Many vehicle steering wheels have an annular shaped rim, a central hub portion, and spokes that extend between the rim and hub portions. The steering wheel includes a rigid frame, and a substrate (e.g., PC-ABS or polyurethane) may be overlaid around the rim portion (and, possibly, other portions) of the frame. A skin is disposed around the substrate to form the outer surface of the rim, spokes and/or hub.
The skin may include an elongated mat that has first and second ends that are opposite each other, and first and second elongated side edges extending between the first and second ends that are opposite each other. The skin is coupled to the substrate via an adhesive that is applied to the substrate and/or the skin at the time of assembly, and the skin is adhered to the substrate. In addition, one of the side edges of the skin wraps over the other side edge and adheres thereto.
Materials such as leather and polyurethane have been used as skins in automobile vehicle steering wheels. These materials can withstand the temperature cycles expected within a cabin of the automobile without cracking. Raw carbon fiber skins have also been used in some cars, such as luxury vehicles, but the raw carbon fiber skins are prone to cracking along the seams of the edges and the ends in response to the typical temperature cycles expected within the cabin. Thus, raw carbon fiber skins are not optimal for vehicles that are subjected to the typical temperature cycles.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for an improved skin and method of assembly of the skin to the steering wheel.